Page 14 The New Calliope
Roarin' Towards Kansas City by Lohren Meier We are excited that you will soon be attending the COAI Convention, April 24-29, <strong>2012</strong>. We wanted to update you on some of the exciting events you will experience at this year's convention. Besides all the great educators, vendors, competitions, jam sessions and general clowning around, we've filled your week in Kansas City with professional entertainment for you to enjoy! Opening night of the convention will feature local performers, including your hosts, The Northland Clown Guild. The next two evenings feature our headliners, including Duane & Mary Laflin as “The King and Presto, Norm Barnhardt as “The Great Normando” and David Bartlett as “Mr. Rainbow.” The Wednesday BBQ buffet luncheon includes “The Golden Era Radio Show” presented by a professional theater company. The Mystery Players have been hired to perform a live radio broadcast. Suddenly, the actors learn part of the troupe has come down with some rare disease and cannot perform. Knowing that this is a very special performance, impromptu auditions must be held for the positions that have to be filled immediately. Roles to be filled include various acting roles, sound effects, music, crowd responses ... Also-there is another problem - the scriptwriter has combined two scripts into one which means the murder mystery and soap opera are in one script. Be careful not to laugh too hard with all that BBQ sauce. Friday evening brings back our professional actors for an interactive murder mystery. Mama Lasagna, the Godmother and head of the notorious Lasagna crime family, is celebrating her birthday. Unfortunately, the celebration is cut short when Mama’s arch rival, Mickey Mozzarella, is found murdered in his Maserati, outside. The problem is that Mickey Mozzarella is a made man, and it’s up to Guido Linguini, one of the Mafia’s most feared hit men, to find his killer. Was it Mama’s incompetent son, Vinnie? Or Vinnie’s cheating wife, Lola? Or Mama’s faithful bodyguard, Giacomo. Or maybe it was Mama herself. Whoever it was, the syndicate wants Guido to find them and bring them to justice, because…nobody whacks a made man and gets away with it. Can your clown brain figure out this mystery? Don't take too long, because our 20th Anniversary Birthday Party is ready to roll as soon as the mystery is solved. We even have entertainment scheduled right till the end. Saturday night is the awards banquet (don't forget your award receiving clothes). During dinner, some of our headliners will be back to add to the evening. A whole week of entertainment is included in your registration! If this isn't enough for your week, you can also register for one of three pre-convention workshops on Tuesday morning: Foam Prop Making By Lohren Meier Make over $90 worth of retail props, plus learn how to get free foam, cut the foam, glue the foam, and color the foam. Notes Included. All for only $50. Limit 20 people. UV-Blacklight Painting By Barbara Carter UV reaches a vast audience from preteens to nightclubbers to sexy seniors. All levels are welcome to this lecture/hands-on workshop. Each of the 25 who register will receive a UV color wheel, sponges and brush to get you started. Cost $40 per person. Limit 25 people. Caring Clowning By Curt and Diana Patty Learn the secrets of working in a hospital: costuming, bags, name placement, sticker use, routines, hospital approved face painting, hospital etiquette with difficult kids, and making staff relationships that last. This workshop is also good for nursing homes and other medical venues. Cost $45 per person. Limit 25 people. Separate registration in addition to your convention registration is required, details online. We're getting close to the big week and finalizing all the details. We almost have the airport shuttle figured out and will let you know ASAP. Don't worry, we won't leave you stranded. To get some special perks like early seating, a bigger goodie bag and convention t-shirt, we still have a few “Godfather” packages available (full details online). We're also still working on some extra side trips like a Kansas City Gangster Trolley Tour and a Royal’s baseball game (just across the street from the hotel). Even if you have already registered, be sure to keep checking. Go to www.coai.org and click on “Convention” for updates. We look forward to seeing all of you for the Roaring 20's in Kansas City this April! l l l January/February <strong>2012</strong> Page 15